Open AccessDivergent improvement of two cultivated allotetraploid cotton species
Author(s) -
Fang Lei,
Zhao Ting,
Hu Yan,
Si Zhanfeng,
Zhu Xiefei,
Han Zegang,
Liu Guizhen,
Wang Sen,
Ju Longzhen,
Guo Menglan,
Mei Huan,
Wang Luyao,
Qi Bowen,
Wang Heng,
Guan Xueying,
Zhang Tianzhen
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
plant biotechnology journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.525
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1467-7652
pISSN - 1467-7644
DOI - 10.1111/pbi.13547
Subject(s) - biology , introgression , domestication , interspecific competition , gossypium barbadense , haplotype , adaptation (eye) , evolutionary biology , backcrossing , genetic variation , genetics , gene , allele , botany , neuroscience
Summary Interspecific genomic variation can provide a genetic basis for local adaptation and domestication. A series of studies have presented its role of interspecific haplotypes and introgressions in adaptive traits, but few studies have addressed their role in improving agronomic character. Two allotetraploid Gossypium species, Gossypium barbadense ( Gb ) and G. hirsutum ( Gh ) originating from the Americas, are cultivated independently. Here, through sequencing and the comparison of one GWAS panel in 229 Gb accessions and two GWAS panels in 491 Gh accessions, we found that most associated loci or functional haplotypes for agronomic traits were highly divergent, representing the strong divergent improvement between Gb and Gh . Using a comprehensive interspecific haplotype map, we revealed that six interspecific introgressions from Gh to Gb were significantly associated with the phenotypic performance of Gb , which could explain 5%–40% of phenotypic variation in yield and fibre qualities. In addition, three introgressions overlapped with six associated loci in Gb , indicating that these introgression regions were under further selection and stabilized during improvement. A single interspecific introgression often possessed yield‐increasing potential but decreased fibre qualities, or the opposite, making it difficult to simultaneously improve yield and fibre qualities. Our study not only has proved the importance of interspecific functional haplotypes or introgressions in the divergent improvement of Gb and Gh , but also supports their potential value in further human‐mediated hybridization or precision breeding.